Baby will only drink 3oz

[Nicola2182]

My baby is formula fed (9 weeks old) - everywhere states she should be drinking 5oz bottles however she will only drink 2-3 oz.. every 3 hours. I'm so worried she's not getting enough, has anyone had any similar experience? If I try to persist she pulls off the bottle and cries.. she winds well and is on lactose free milk to see if it was an intolerance but I've seen no improvement and she's been on this new milk for a week now.

Is she gaining weight on the correct time scale? Does she seem happy and content between feedings? If so, I wouldn't worry about this at all. She is telling you she is full after her 2-3oz and is making it clear that she doesn't meed more and you should trust that and listen to her.

Obviously, if you were told by a medical professional that she is underweight and needs to be eating more or eating more frequently then disregard my advice and do what they tell you to do.

Where's everywhere? The tin of milk? Ignore it.

If she's gaining weight and following her percentile she sounds like you are both doing great.

If she's refusing more, she's full and happy.

My DD is formula fed and the 'tin' tells me she should be on 6oz 5 times a day..... she's on 7oz 4 times a day. It works for her and she's gaining the right weight etc I wouldn't worry too much, as long as your baby is gaining the correct weight and the medical professionals aren't concerned, no child is the same

If she’s content between feeds and growing then just let her be. Otherwise talk to HV I’d say! Definitely demand feed over force feeding. You can’t really make someone else eat anyway.

To add, my baby is 4 weeks and drinks every 2 hours, sometimes has 20 oz, sometimes 120 oz. So not at all what the box says. Don’t worry about it! :)

Not oz. Mililitres. You know what I mean.

Don't look at the bottle. Mine was small, never drank as much as the tin said. I worried so much. He's just turned 1 ans absolutely fine.
It took mine some time to find his percentile. Don't pressure, follow cues or leave 3h between feeds. They won't starve themselves. It's their instinct to drink however much they need. You're doing a great job xx

@Nicola2182 - just ensure she isn't getting dehydrated - these are the key signs for babies:

•	seem drowsy
•	breathe fast
•	have few or no tears when they cry
•	have a soft spot on their head that sinks inwards (sunken fontanelle)
•	have a dry mouth
•	have dark yellow pee or have not had a pee in last 12 hours
•	have cold and blotchy-looking hands and feet

www.nhs.uk/conditions/dehydration/

Force feeding will crate the opposite. You don't want to dread feeding your child and create a bottle aversion. Please make sure you continue to have a positive feeding relationship. Dehydration won't happen unless the baby drinks less than 500ml a day consistently.

My DD used to be like this. Didn't want to breastfeed and I was lucky if I could get her to take 2oz from a bottle. I used to watch enviously as other mums got their babies to take a 6oz bottle.

DD was always at the lower end of the percentile range - almost dropping off the bottom at some points - but my GP would always reassure me she was fine, she was just petite. Don't know how, because no-one in my family was petite. She would sleep for England and her bowel movements were fine.

She's now 23 and a slender size 6. She's never ever been a big eater but can eat any amount of takeaways/MaccyDs and not put on an ounce.

Thanks for your reply ☺️ it's good to know some babies just tend to drink less.. I am getting her weighed today, she is currently on. The 25th centile so hopefully she is still on that

This is exactly what I was also worried about.. it's difficult when sometimes she stops at 1 oz and I have to persevere to even get another oz in.

Thank you for this, very reassuring ☺️

Thank you 😊 I'm getting her weighed again today so I will update on this. She's on the 25th percentile currently

If it helps, my LO was still only drinking 5oz per feed when she turned 1! She's healthy and eats well

My baby never followed the "they should be drinking" amount. He always did less. He was on 3/4 oz for the first 3/4oz for the first few months. Even when older he only ever went up to 7oz when other babies were drinking 9oz.

Aw really, that's reassuring thank you 😊

Thank you - I think I need to stop stressing on what the internet says she should be eating 🤦🏻‍♀️

So long as she eats roughly what she's supposed to eat per day I wouldn't worry. If she has e.g. 3 x 10oz bottles or 10 x 3oz bottles ot doesn't matter.

My little girl (5.5 months) eats every couple of hours during the day (usually 1.5 -2 hourly) but has her recommended amounts. Frustrating as other people feed their baby 6-7oz at a time - mine still has on average 4oz each time. They are all different, don't force her and feed when she is hungry.

It's all about how she is in herself (happy), wet and dirty nappies and weight gain. Ignore quantities. Trying to get her to take more than she wants will stretch her stomach, develop a negative feeding association and potentially start off a lifetime of "clean your plate" appetite/portion issues. Although she isn't breastfed you can still feed on demand/be baby led not formula industry led.